Zias split at Permian Basin

April 6, 2010

Freedom New Mexico

ODESSA, Texas — Freshman Amanda Lale’s two-run homer in the top of the eighth inning Tuesday lifted Eastern New Mexico University’s softball team to a 5-4 victory over Texas-Permian Basin in the first game of a softball doubleheader.

The Falcons, though, rallied to win the nightcap 7-4, scoring four unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth to break open a 3-2 game.

Lale (2-4) pitched three innings in relief of starter Kimberly Crouse to get the win. She gave up an unearned run to allow the Falcons to tie it 3-3 in the bottom of the fifth before providing the winning margin with her third homer of the season in the eighth.

With the international tiebreaker in effect in extra innings, UTPB pulled to within a run in the bottom half after Shanna Dees was placed on second to start the frame, took third on a wild pitch and scored on Cene Padilla’s sacrifice fly. An error put the potential tying run on base, but Lale got a flyout and strikeout to end it.

Second baseman Rebecca Quinones gave the Zias (10-30) a 2-0 lead with her fifth homer, a two-run blast, with two out in the first. Melissa Williams led off the second with a double and scored on Taylor Howard’s one-out single to center for a 3-1 lead.

Padilla, who drove in three runs, homered in the third and Angel Castro went deep in the fifth for the Falcons (10-26).

Quinones hit an RBI double and Taylor delivered a run-scoring infield single for the Zias in the first inning of Game 2, but UTPB’s Bailie Summers (6-11) blanked ENMU after that until giving up two-out RBI singles to Kandice Kaiser and Kassandra Sanchez in the seventh. Summers allowed 12 hits in going the distance, striking out nine.

Lale was charged with the loss, coming in for starter Brittany Widner in the fourth. She gave up five runs in two innings, but only one was earned.

Dees homered leading off the second and catcher Leigh Ann Staggs led off the fourth with a home run, putting the Falcons in front 3-2.